Oleksandr Usyk, the Ukrainian Cossack who from the ring does not forget the war against Russia: “I saw people without arms or legs”

Boxing is a sport subscribed to epics and stories of overcoming, and of Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk He is one of them, and he has been since he was born and until this past weekend where ‘Te Cat’ once again proved his three belts that identify him as the boss of the heavyweights. Usyk was born in Crimeaof parents who came from northern Ukraine. His mother worked in construction and his father was a soldier who fought Afghanistan and that he worked as a security guard in Crimea. Oleksandr He is the oldest of three siblings and as a child he did not have it easy, as he was a sickly child and suffered severe pneumonia at the age of 7, which fortunately he overcame.

He loves sports and started with soccer, which he played until he was 15 years old and where he continued to train periodically, until his parents signed him up for a gym and over years he cultivated the skills that he eventually developed. reflected in the ring. In deep Christian-Orthodox faith, Usyk began to unfold a little then Beijing 2008 Olympic Gamesalthough from an amateur point of view he exploded in the London 2012 Olympic cycle, the year in which he was declared world champion and Olympic champion in the best boxing team Ukraine has ever had, along with Denys Berinchyk and Vasyl Lomachenko, inter alia. An Olympic gold full of symbolism since his father died a few days after becoming Olympic champion

He closed his amateur era with an impressive record of 335 wins and only 15 losses, but his transition to professionalism was hesitant and slow. Oleksandr joined hands with Klitschko brothers, Wladimir and Vitali. At that time, he said he would sign TopRank and Bob Arum He told him not to continue in the cruiser division, where he had been active until then, that he had to go directly to the heavyweights, where the money was, and this was the reason Usyk didn’t continue. the steps of Lomachenko andn at first and stayed in Ukraine doing his first professional fights.

But quality is quality and it starts to have opportunities. He made the leap to professional boxing in 2013 and three years later was proclaimed world champion in Poland by defeating the Polish Kryzstof Glowacki and two years later, he would unify all the world cruiserweight belts after defeating the Russian Murat Gassiev.

He finally made the move to the heavyweight division where he once again said that he was not comfortable because he felt like a cruiser, because he is a technical guy but for the heavyweight division he is still small. Despite having muscle, his biggest assets now and then are his technique and his quickness of hands and feet, as seen this weekend after defeating Tyson Fury and after defeating, among others, Derek Chisora and Anthony Joshuaamong others.

Since his professional debut, ‘The Cat’ remains undefeated (23, 14 KOS-0-0). He is the king of the division, but he never forgets his roots and his love for his people. He led several initiatives to help the most disadvantaged in his country, he donated part of his money and paid from his pocket for the reconstruction of buildings, even interrupting his professional career to remove his gloves and enlist in the Ukrainian army in the face of Russian aggression. He did this in the same year where he had to fight for the MAB, IBF and WBO heavyweight world titles and after fighting in Joshua.

Another soldier to fight the Russian invaders

He did it like a common soldier, he didn’t like the differences, and it was an experience he would never forget. “I saw people without arms or legs. I saw those who could still walk like the walking dead. Soldiers are only there to fight for freedom. And we will win that freedom,” he said then.

One idea he continues to maintain and proof of this is that after defeating Fury this weekend in Riyadh he showed the saber of Ivan Stepanovich Mazepalegendary Russian Cossack who inspired an entire people, a long list of intellectuals with his works and an entire nation. Today, Usyk raises the Ukrainian flag every time he steps into the ring, where he has more than once performed his country’s traditional dances after his matches, winning the hearts of an entire nation and the president this. Volodymyr Zelenskywho after retaining his world heavyweight belts said “Oleksandr Usyk It shows that we are Ukrainians and we will not give up what is ours. No matter how hard it is, we will overcome everything. Whether in the ring, on the battlefield or in the diplomatic field, we will fight and we will not surrender what is ours.”

A champion from head to toe who never forgets his roots no matter how many millions he has in the bank, and who, as his friend explained to MD Carlos Utrilla of the Royal Spanish Boxing Federation: “He wrote one of the most impressive pages in the history of heavyweights. He had confidence in boxing and knew how to play his tricks, with great technical excellence for the division and above all , insane speed and great discipline. win twice a Joshuain Duboisand twice a Tyson Fury For a guy who is far from boring and unfeeling, not bad. “He wrote one of the best pages of boxing in a long time.”